A Lamp To My Feet
“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” Psalm 119:105 (NIV)
Elisabeth Elliot died Monday at age 88. Elliot was one of the most influential Christian women of the 20th century. Following her martyred husband's death, Elisabeth Elliot returned to the mission field with her young daughter. She spent 2 years living with the Auca Indians, the savage tribe who had murdered her husband Jim and four other missionaries. She spent several more years working with the Quichua Indians before returning to United States in 1963. For a half-century, Elliot's best selling books, timeless teachings, and courageous faith have influenced believers throughout the world. Author of more than twenty books, Elliot inspired generations of evangelical Christians with her clear and clarion call to Christian missions, Christian womanhood, and Christian purity.
Here are some of the headlines announcing her death:
"Missionary Pioneer Elisabeth Elliot Passes Through Gates of Splendor"- Christianity Today 6/15/15
"How Elisabeth Elliot Messed up My Love Life" - The Washington Post
"Elisabeth Elliot, Tenacious Missionary to Ecuador, Dies at 88" - New York Times 6/18/15
"Peaches in Paradise" - Desiring God, John Piper
"A Profound Legacy: Remembering Elisabeth Elliot" - CBN News 6/15/15
"The wide of a murdered missionary has died. Here's why Elisabeth Elliot's life mattered to so many." The Washington Post 6.15.15
Elisabeth Elliot didn't just inspire others; she mentored and shaped me. I'm sure Elliot never knew it, but the fact is that my life and the lives of my children, are very different because of her life.
As a young mom, I read several of Elliot's books, including Through Gates of Splendor and Shadow of the Almighty. Both books recount the story of Jim and Elisabeth's courtship, brief marriage, missionary work, and Jim's death. I was intrigued by Elisabeth's life story: daughter of missionaries to Belgium, missionary to Ecuador, wife of a martyr; single mom to Valerie; widowed for the second time to a husband lost to cancer; landlady to seminary students- one of whom became her third husband. I was challenged by Elliot's commitment to God's Word and will. My life, however, wasn't changed by her words until February, 2001.
Elisabeth Elliot was the featured speaker at our church's weekend women's event. At the time, my children were ages 11, 9, 6 and 3. Life was very busy, especially with James Bruce's special needs and the fact that he functioned as an infant. Each child was in a different school and we had no car pool. That meant four drop-offs and four pick-ups, same time, different places. My husband was coaching two high school sports and that meant that he often left early and returned home after the kids had gone to bed. I juggled my part time job as a pharmacist, with the demands of raising our family and running our household. There were, of course, after school activities for the older children: piano, dance, athletics, and homework. I was constantly harried, hurried, and worried. There was never enough time, energy, money, or sleep.
I attended the women's conference hoping to gain one gold nugget of help, hope, or encouragement. John Maxwell defines encouragement as "oxygen to the soul." And, oh, how my weary soul needed some oxygen! I wasn't prepared for the disappointment that followed. I sat through each of Elisabeth Elliot's sessions waiting on my gold nugget. It didn't come. My anxiety level, frustration, and disappointment grew with each session. Finally, I desperately prayed, "God, please send a gold nugget. Just one. Please!"
The last session ended without a gold nugget, or so I thought. Almost as an afterthought, the organizers allowed a brief question and answer session with Elisabeth Elliot. She flipped through some index cards that had questions written on them before selecting one card that read, "How do you know God's will for your life?"
Sitting on the edge of my chair, I eagerly anticipated her answer.
"That's easy," Elisabeth said. "You do your next thing."
Stunned by her abruptness that, quite honestly, bordered on rudeness or dismissal, I fumed, fretted, and gathered my things to go home. Just about that time, however, Elliot pulled the question back out and continued her answer. "Actually, you discipline your emotions and do your next thing, whatever it is. God says that His Word is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. A lamp gives us light for our very next step, whatever it is. If it's changing a dirty diaper, that's God's will for your life. If it's cooking supper, that's God's will for your life. God doesn't give us freeway light to see to the end of our journey. He gives us light for our very next step."
And with those eight words, I received TWO gold nuggets of help and hope." Discipline your emotions and do your next thing" became my personal mantra for raising my children. No matter the task -cooking supper, changing a diaper, helping with homework, sending a child to college, losing a parent, planning a child's wedding, or speaking at a women's event- “discipline your emotions and do your next thing” has served me well. I am forever grateful for the wisdom of those words.
John Piper's summarizes Elisabeth's life with the word "obedience." Others have used the words "faithful" and "legacy." I'm certain that God's words to Elisabeth were "Well done!" My words are simply, "Thank you!"
Wherever we are today, let's discipline our emotions and do our next thing.
For God's glory,
Donna